Read the novel “The Master and the Margarita” – (PDF provided) and then answer any one of the following prompts. If you use quotes from the book, make sure to cite them using Chicago author date style. Use Double spaced pages
Select one of the topics below and address it in a preliminary mini-paper, 550-700 words. The purpose of this paper is to give you an opportunity to begin thinking about your final paper. Consider which of these prompts is most compelling to you such that you would be able to write about it without going back to the novel to search for passages or evidence. This assignment is not a draft. Although this paper is short, it should be a polished piece of writing.
Topic #1 The Double Plot
The Master and Margarita is set in two cities: Moscow, where Woland, the master, and Margarita are at the center of the plot, and Yershalaim, where the drama of Yeshua and Pilate drives the plot forward. Analyze the juxtaposition of these two plot lines and examine the meaning of this juxtaposition.
Topic #2 Character Transformations
Many characters undergo transformations throughout the book, in big and small ways. Margarita turns into a witch, some characters die and are brought to life, Nikolai Ivanovich turns into a pig, etc. What is the significance of these transformations?
The Master and Margarita features many characters who are writers by profession. Who are they? What do they write? Is there a hierarchy among them? Describe the importance of this profession within the novel.
Topic #4 Narrators and Narration
The Moscow chapters are narrated in a style known as skaz narration, from the Russian verb skazat’, which means to say, speak, or tell. Characteristic of skaz narration is the oral quality of the narrative voice, the sense that a specific, embodied individual is narrating the story. How would you characterize and describe the Moscow narrators style? What can you say about the narrators identity based on how he narrates the Moscow chapters? You may also consider who narrates the Jerusalem chapters. How does the narration of the Moscow chapters differ from that of the Jerusalem chapters?
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